Hip-Hop | Musicosity

Hip-Hop

Flying Lotus

Los Angeles resident Steven Ellison. a.k.a. Juno Leed a.k.a. Flying Lotus is an electronic artist/hip-hop beat-maker, occasionally linked to artists such as Madlib , J Dilla and fellow LA resident The Gaslamp Killer for his more abstract and sometimes jazz-tinted style. Flying Lotus, often abbreviated to FlyLo, is currently signed to Warp Records, although he released his first album, 1983 on Plug Research Records, the label to which he belonged from 2006-2007. His June 2008 release, Los Angeles, with cover art designed by Build & Timothy Saccenti, was released to positive critical reviews.

The Brotherhood

The Brotherhood were UK Hip Hop's big hitters in the mid-90's. Originally released as founding artists on the Bite It! label they were later signed to Virgin. They released a number of 12" singles, EP's and mini albums, with the main album 'Elementalz' being released by Virgin to critical acclaim, but low levels of sales. They split with Virgin after a turbulent label experience and the death of their manager Marts Androps (who was also the manager of Roger Sanchez).

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Diplo

Diplo, Diplodocus, Wes Gully, and Wes Diplo are all pseudonyms of Wesley Pentz, a Philadelphia-based producer and DJ since 2003. Together with DJ Low Budget he runs Hollertronix, a party and music collective. In addition to his solo career, he has worked with Sri-Lankan/Tamil singer and artist M.I.A.. The two were also romantically involved. Pentz's alias, short for Diplodocus, derives from his childhood fascination with dinosaurs.

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Cut Chemist

Cut Chemist is the performing name of Lucas MacFadden, a solo turntablist. He is a former member of the funk Latin band Ozomatli, and of the underground rap group Jurassic 5. He became known through the Los Angeles-based rap group Unity Committee, and debuted on vinyl on the B-Side of Unity Committee's 1993 single, Unified Rebelution. The track, "Lesson 4: The Radio" was an ovation of Double Dee and Steinski's seminal hip-hop masterpieces, "Lessons 1-3."

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Electric Wire Hustle

Developing their own sound and twist on modern hip-hop, psychedelic and soul, the music of EWH reaches forward while referencing key points of music's past. Thick drums and percussion layered with synth lines, hints of the Fender Rhodes and nylon stringed guitars have your neck snapping while your ears crane to its soulful vocals. While the EWH moniker is a relatively fresh name (formed in 2006) on the scene, this production trio is no stranger to the music game. Members Myele Manzanza, Taay Ninh, Mara TK are all familiar faces in the music scene in Wellington, New Zealand.

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Buck 65

Richard Terfry, better known as Buck 65, is a Canadian hip hop artist, MC and turntablist. However he has recently moved away from hip hop in a stylistic context, and is moving closer to blues, country, rock, folk and avant-garde genres. That said, his new direction is seemingly still underpinned by an extensive background in abstract hip hop, his trademark rhyme-phrasing and lyrical aspiration evident in the altered timbre vocal delivery displayed in his more recent releases. Buck 65 has also introduced his style as crap, a mixture between country and rap.

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New Boyz

The New Boyz are a hip hop group and jerkin' crew from Hesperia, California comprised of rappers Earl "Ben J" Benjamin and Dominic "Legacy" Thomas. After meeting as freshmen at Hesperia High School they released their debut single You're a Jerk, which was based on the local dance style of jerkin'. It became a national hit and paved the way for them to release their debut album Skinny Jeanz and a Mic in September 2009 and release another successful single, Tie Me Down featuring Ray J.

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Dru Hill

Dru Hill is an American singing group, most popular during the late 1990s, whose repertoire includes R&B and soul music. Founded in Baltimore, Maryland and active from 1992 to 2005, Dru Hill recorded seven Top 40 hits, and is best known for the R&B #1 hits "In My Bed", "Never Make a Promise", and "How Deep is Your Love". Tamir "Nokio" Ruffin was the group's founder and leader; his bandmates included main lead singer Mark "Sisqó" Andrews, Larry "Jazz" Anthony, and James "Woody" Green.

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Blacastan

You will never catch BLACASTAN rocking a mullet or a neon cardigan. Blacastan will never duet with a boy band or auto-tune his lyrics. His sound is not only the past, but a glimpse of an unpaved lane on the highway to hip hop's holy land, the physical embodiment of this rap shit the way it was meant to be heard. The second coming of the shit you used to watch @ 4:30 PM on BET in 1994. Classic material.

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